Beneath the Anger
by Twisted Vixen
Summary: Sasuke was back. Everything was supposed to be great right? Well then why was the team falling apart? SasuNaruSasu
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: **Sasuke was back. Everything was supposed to be great right? Well then why was the team falling apart?

**Warnings: **SasuNaruSasu Yaoi

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Naruto

**

* * *

Beneath the Anger**

**Chapter 1**

**

* * *

**It was a beautiful day. The sky was blue, the sun was shining brightly, hardly a cloud dotted the sky. Poor Shikamaru wouldn't have much to watch on this day. The air had just a hint of fall crispness. It was a perfect day for training. Unfortunately training was the last thing on the minds of one team in particular. The sound at the Team Kakashi training ground was unmistakable.

-Punch-

-Kick-

-Punch-

-Block-

-Kick-

-Punch-

-Kick-

-Retreat-

"Teme!" Naruto growled as he ran forward again with a powerful punch aimed at a pale expressionless face.

Sasuke caught the fist with a hand and kicked out. Naruto twisted his body around and sent an elbow towards his back connecting right between the shoulder blades.

Sasuke growled and threw a punch at the tanned face. Naruto bent back but Sasuke spun into a kick tripping the blonde so he fell on the dirt. Naruto was right back up and glared at the Uchiha. Both of them were breathing hard. At an unknown signal they both ran forward again.

Sasuke had been back in the village for almost a year now. He had killed Itachi, but passed out from the blood loss and chakra exhaustion. Before anyone else could get a hold of him, Naruto found him and put him on his back to take him home just like he'd promised. After being stuck in the hospital for a week recovering, Sasuke went before the council for a hearing. His punishment was solitary confinement in his home for six months with anbu presence at all hours, nothing but D rank missions for a year and unable to take the chuunin exams for two years. It was practically a slap on the wrist for someone who had betrayed the village and joined up with one of the village's biggest enemies. Most people figured it was because of Naruto's influence with the Hokage.

They were wrong.

Naruto knew the truth. He just wasn't willing to share it.

Everyone figured Team Kakashi, formerly known as Team 7, would finally be back to normal.

Again, they were wrong.

Team Kakashi was on the verge of imploding. If anyone thought Naruto and Sasuke fought before, it was nothing compared to now. It wasn't a rivalry anymore.

It was vicious.

It was angry.

It was bloody.

It was almost hate in its purest form.

Kakashi had resorted to keeping the two on opposite ends of the training area just to keep peace. For as soon as the two got within five feet of each other, war broke out.

No one knew what had happened. And no one knew how to fix it.

Unfortunately, Kakashi wasn't around today. He was at a meeting with the hokage, so Sakura was stuck alone on the sidelines watching the two males of her team pound each other relentlessly. At the tender age of 12 she had learned never to get in between her teammate's battles. It took almost getting destroyed by a chidori and a rasengan to learn that getting between the two was hazardous to her health. She'd also learned that screaming for them to stop was a waste of her lungs and throat. They didn't listen.

And so she watched with tears in her eyes as the punches flew and the blood flowed.

"Chidori!"

"Rasengan!"

The two ran forward and the jutsus collided sending a shockwave of power over the landscape before they were pushed to opposite sides of the clearing. The only reason Sakura remained standing was by the force of her chakra alone. She was thankful for the shockwave actually. She had wanted to leave and find someone to stop them, but she was too afraid to leave the two lest they kill each other before she returned. Hopefully this would alert someone that could come and stop them.

Both males stood on shaky legs trying to catch a second, or was it a third, wind. Their clothes were dirty, bloody and ripped. Yet somehow Sasuke still looked like royalty while Naruto looked like a dirty vagrant. And it irked the blonde. With a burst of adrenaline, he ran forward yelling, a rasengan forming again in his hand, this time adding the element of wind. Sasuke saw it and ran toward him preparing another chidori. Sakura saw what Naruto was doing and she couldn't help it. She screamed at the top of her lungs, closing her eyes not wanting to see the outcome.

"STOP IT!"

A few seconds went by and nothing happened. When she finally got the courage to open her eyes, she breathed a sigh of relief, thanking Kami. Kakashi had stopped Sasuke...Yamato had stopped Naruto.

Naruto growled, eyes red and slitted due to the Kyuubi, and struggled against the wooden bonds that held him prisoner. "Let go of me dammit!"

Sasuke was silent but no less demonstrative in trying to get out of the wires Kakashi had wrapped around him, sharingan spinning wildly.

Kakashi sighed and looked at his two male charges. Then he turned his head to the left to see Sakura's tearstained face. He really had no idea what to do about the three anymore. Becoming an ANBU again wasn't looking like such a bad option these days. "Sakura, why don't you go home for a while? We'll take care of things here."

"But..."

"Don't worry, we'll be fine." Sakura hesitantly nodded and walked away. She turned once more to look at her struggling teammates before running off. She didn't know if she could take anymore. They meant too much to her. The two boys, had become her family. And they were falling apart...again.

Kakashi watched the distraught young woman leave. When she was out of sight, he nodded to Yamato and the two disappeared with their younger charges.

* * *

Tsunade leaned forward with her elbows on her desk and glared at the males in her office. She had more important things to worry about than these two again. "What happened this time?"

"We found the two rearranging the landscape of the training grounds with their jutsus." Kakashi replied.

The guilty culprits stood sullenly glaring at the ground. They had both been handcuffed like criminals in order to keep them away from each other. Tsunade looked the two up and down. Their clothes were practically rags. They both bled from various wounds, well Naruto's were already healing. Both were dirty from head to toe. She shook her head in disbelief. She really had no idea what to do about the two.

"Naruto? Do you have anything to say?" Naruto who had been uncharacteristically quiet in her presence, looked up at her stern face but stubbornly stayed silent. Tsunade sighed. "Sasuke?" Ok, she knew it would be wishful thinking that the monosyllabic Uchiha would be willing to say anything. But she tried anyway.

Sasuke was silent, of course.

"Look, I don't know what the problem is between you two. Truthfully I don't care anymore. But I have dealt with the two of you in here more times than I can count and it has to stop. My job is not to deal with meaningless personal squabbles. You are ninja. You are part of a team. A team which is being torn apart because of your constant fighting. And I have had just about enough from both of you. You're both supposed to be considered adults. Start acting like it!" She glared at the two of them emphasizing it with a fist slamming against her desk with enough force to crack it.

Neither young man jumped. So much for intimidation.

Tsunade spent a minute thinking of what to do. When she had finally come up with a plan, she stood up and walked around her desk to stand before the two of them. Her hands flashed through hand signs and she placed a finger against both their foreheads and whispered a few words. Both of them slumped to the floor, out cold.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"Oh don't worry, their both fine, just knocked out." She looked at the young men for a moment and thought about healing them, then thought better of it. If they want to beat the crap out of each other, they can fix themselves up. "I want both of you to take them to the remotest part of the village. Yamato, build a house devoid of anything but the necessities. Place them in it with their sleeping bags, clothes and enough food to last two weeks. No weapons. Lock them up in there and seal it closed. They will either talk to each other rationally or kill each other...it's their choice. But they will resolve this, whatever it is, one way or another." Tsunade was really at her wits end. It was the only way left she could think of to deal with them. Hopefully, just maybe, this could work.

The two men nodded and were about to leave.

"Wait!" Tsunade stopped them and grabbed two sets of chakra inhibiting bracelets and placed one set on Naruto, the other set on Sasuke. "Now you're dismissed."

The four males disappeared.

* * *

Yamato and Kakashi stood in a clearing. The two knocked out genins were lying on the ground. Yamato did some hand signs. "Shichuuka no Jutsu." Wood beams swiftly emerged from the ground shape shifting to form a small one story home. Kakashi and Yamato looked at each other and nodded, lifting the two unconscious ninjas like sacks of potatoes and carried them into the ready made home. A shadow clone of Kakashi showed up moments later with all the supplies needed to last them. They left the two on the floor and departed, closing the door behind them. Kakashi then worked on placing seals on each side of the house, making sure no one could get in or out, for better or worse.

As they walked around the house Yamato couldn't help but wonder. "I don't understand them at all. Well at least not Naruto. He spent all his time training to get Sasuke back. That's all he talked about. What could've happened between the two?"

Kakashi shrugged unconcerned. "Those two have always been rivals. They've been fighting since the day they met."

"But like this? This isn't rivalry. They're on the verge of killing each other!"

Kakashi put up the last ward and the two began a slow trek back to the center of the village. "Well, I can sense some resentment on Sasuke's part. He was brought back against his will, after all."

"Well, that's understandable. But what about Naruto? He's not usually so vicious toward anyone but his enemies."

Kakashi sighed. "Ahh...Naruto. Anger, resentment, sadness, you name it he has it. I think all of it is combining to make him pretty volatile, especially with his quick temper."

"But why? You'd think he'd be happy to have him back. Instead he seems like he'd like nothing better than for the Uchiha to be gone."

"Hmm...well, they have many unresolved issues."

"Unresolved issues?"

"The problem with both of them is that they have been alone for so long, they don't understand their emotions. Sasuke, besides being an emotionally stunted Uchiha by birthright, shut himself down emotionally after the massacre. He doesn't show any emotion, nor does he let anyone in. Naruto was probably the closest he let anyone get to him. Naruto, being an orphan, as well as the Kyuubi container, has received nothing but negative emotions from most of the village his entire life. Neither of them knows how to deal with what they're feeling."

Yamato stopped and turned to look at Kakashi directly. "Are you saying what I think you are?"

Kakashi put his hands in his pockets and blinked lazily with one eye. "That depends on what you think I'm saying.

"You think...Naruto and Sasuke..." Yamato wasn't sure enough to finish his thought.

"They say there's a thin line between love and hate."

"You really believe that's what all this is about?"

"Yep. Look, Sasuke has always avoided the female populace of fangirls like the plague. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he just about hated girls altogether. I doubt any of them would have the qualities he'd want in a relationship, if he even knew what he wanted."

"But I always thought Naruto had a thing for Sakura."

Kakashi chuckled. "Do you really believe that Naruto expended as much energy as he did training, running himself to exhaustion, practically killing himself to get to Sasuke if he didn't feel something beyond friendship? The boy was borderline obsessive about him. Sakura was the self proclaimed head of the Sasuke Uchiha fanclub and she didn't work that hard."

Yamato blinked. He still was finding this hard to believe. And yet, now that Kakashi spelled it out for him, it made a strange sort of sense. It sure explained Naruto's behavior. It definitely explained why he could go from being completely sane to a 4 tailed Kyuubi state at just the mention of the Uchiha by Orochimaru. He chuckled softly. If that was what it was, he hoped he never ended up in that kind of predicament. "I think Tsunade-sama is crazy for doing this."

"You have a better idea?"

"No."

"Well then... Besides, now they'll have no choice but to either deal with their issues or be stuck in that house forever. Those two may be stubborn, but I have a feeling after a few days of being stuck in each other's presence for 24 hours a day – and after beating each other to a pulp – they'll be ready to do whatever they have to in order to get out of there."

* * *

Sasuke woke first. He groaned softly. His head was pounding. Why was his bed suddenly so hard? He opened his eyes and looked at an unfamiliar ceiling. This wasn't his home. Besides, wasn't he just outside fighting? He sat up suddenly as he remembered what he had been doing. Too fast...his head spun and he moaned again. He was on the floor. No wonder. Once his head stopped spinning, his eyes roamed over the large room observing his surroundings. Well there wasn't much to observe...wall, wall, wall, dobe, wall, door, kitchen. Where in the world was he? And why did he have a feeling it was all the stupid dobe's fault?

It was another 20 minutes before Naruto stirred. He rolled over and groaned as he sat up, his back cracking. "Ow...my back." Why the heck was he sleeping on the floor? Wait...wasn't he training? No, fighting the teme? He looked around at the unfamiliar room and mumbled, "What the hell?" He stood up and walked through the house, which didn't take long since it was only one room, a kitchen and a bathroom. When he came back into the larger room he saw Sasuke leaning against the wall with one leg up to his chest. He glared at the dark haired male. "Che...teme. What did you do?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"Where the hell are we?"

"How should I know, idiot?"

"Teme." He growled and got up, walking to the door to try and open it, with no luck.

Sasuke sighed. "I tried that already." Naruto went to the window. Sasuke rolled his eyes

"Tried that too."

Naruto glared and was about to punch out the window, figuring Kyuubi would heal whatever damage was incurred, when he noticed his new accessories. His eyes widened. He didn't need to ask, he knew what these bracelets were.

"What the hell?"

* * *

Sakura stood before her mentor while Tsunade gulped down another sake.

"Where are they?"

Tsunade was happy for the drink. She'd need it to deal with the only sane Team Kakashi member left. She was starting to feel like a counselor instead of the hokage. "I'm sorry Sakura, I cannot tell you."

"But Tsunade-shishou…"

"Sakura, I know you're concerned, but this is for the best."

Sakura sat in a chair and sighed. She looked almost lost. "It wasn't supposed to be like this."

"Hm?" Tsunade looked at her student.

"We were supposed to be happy. Naruto and I would bring him back. Sasuke would come home. We would be a team again. We would all be happy again. This is all wrong." Tears began to fill and slowly slip from the green eyes.

"Oh, Sakura..."

"What happened to us Shishou? We worked so hard to get Sasuke to come back - Naruto harder than anyone. He refused to let him go. But now that he's back, it's like they hate each other. What happened to them? Why can't things be the way they were before, back when we were Team 7, when we were a real team?"

Tsunade stood and kneeled in front of the softly crying medic nin and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Sakura, the three of you are not the same people you were back then. Things will never be exactly the same. But those two, they have so many issues that need to be resolved."

"But they never tell me anything. Why can't they tell me what's wrong? I could help. I'm always the one left out."

"When you are upset and need someone to talk to, don't you usually talk to Ino?"

Sakura nodded.

"Women have a tendency to want to talk to someone when they need help. Men are different. Men tend to internalize everything. Compound the fact that both Sasuke and Naruto have gotten used to being alone. Because of that, they have learned to keep everything to themselves. You and I both know that Naruto doesn't tell anyone what's usually bothering him."

"And of course, Sasuke doesn't talk to anyone." Sakura added.

"ust imagine how much has been building and building between the two over the years. Eventually it has to blow over. It's only typical that they tend to only bring it out of each other." Tsunade shook her head. "I swear if I didn't know any better..." She muttered mostly to herself, but Sakura heard her.

"What?"

Tsunade thought about where her rambling had taken her and decided she better not mention her sudden suspicions.

"Nothing. Don't worry Sakura, I'm sure things will work out."

* * *

It started with glares.

Battle lines had unconsciously been drawn somewhere in the middle of the room. Naruto sat on the floor on one end. Sasuke sat on the floor on the other. Even Naruto's growling stomach couldn't get him to end the glaring match. The two still looked like they'd been through hell. Although Naruto's wounds had already healed because of Kyuubi, he was still a bloody dirty mess. His favorite jacket was almost in tatters. Sasuke's surface wounds had dried, but even the regal Uchiha looked a mess.

Yet neither of them moved.

A couple of hours passed and they were still in the same positions. It was dark and only the moonlight made the room somewhat visible. After one powerful growl of his stomach, Naruto finally moved. He could be stubborn, but in the face of starvation, it fled him. He slowly got up and went to the kitchen. Hopefully whoever locked them in here left them with some food. Going through all the cabinets and the refrigerator he found that they were fully stocked. He made a sandwich and ate it quickly, then walked over to his pack and found some clothes. Grabbing them up, he went to the bathroom and closed the door. He finally saw exactly how horrible he looked in the mirror. Closing his eyes he sighed and banged the back of his head against the wall.

He was so tired...

The moment Naruto closed the door, Sasuke made a beeline for the kitchen. There was no way he'd give the dobe the satisfaction of knowing he was hungry. He looked through the refrigerator and grabbed a couple of pieces of fruit and some rice balls. He was surprised the blonde didn't scream at the lack of ramen.

Sasuke looked down at himself. He was an absolute mess. That dobe better not use up all the hot water. Maybe after he was clean and dressed he would figure out what was going on. Unfortunately, that meant possibly having to talk to the dobe. He sighed and closed his eyes rubbing his temple with his finger.

He was so tired of fighting...

Naruto stood under the hot spray with his palms against the wall, letting it massage his aching muscles while it washed off the blood and grime. He really couldn't understand what was going on with him. Why was it that every time he saw Sasuke's face it pissed him off? This was the same precious person he'd worked so hard to get to come home. But now that he was here, albeit reluctantly, everything led to them beating each other's brains out. It was like every little thing the Uchiha did or said irked him. That smirk, the way he still called him dobe like he was still superior to him. The teme still made him feel inferior. Sasuke still would not acknowledge him. He slammed his hand against the tiles. Even with all the training he'd done, he still couldn't beat him dammit.

But that wasn't really what pissed him off, if he was honest with himself.

He couldn't get the teme out of his head. For some reason, just watching him fight made him feel strange things. There was something about the way he looked...all that power encompassed in that slim build, the sweat that trailed down the pale skin...it even invaded his dreams. He didn't understand what the feeling was. But whatever it was, it was making him want to punch the teme every time he saw him just so he could get the feeling out of his head.

He turned off the knob and grabbed the towel rubbing the water out of his hair then wiping down his body. He pulled on the tshirt and sweats he found in his pack and then left the steamy bathroom behind. He ignored the Uchiha standing in the kitchen and kneeled down rolling out his sleeping bag and laying back on it, closing his eyes with a sigh.

Sasuke followed Naruto with his eyes as he walked past him and laid on his sleeping bag. The stupid dobe was ignoring him. He wasn't sure how he felt about that actually. He was going to say something, but thought better of it and grabbed his pack, taking it into the bathroom with him.

He decided to ignore the mirror altogether. He didn't need it to tell him how messed up he was. Naruto really packed a punch. He turned on the shower and groaned as the hot water ran down his body and stung his various cuts. He clenched his hands into fists. He hated this. He and his best friend had turned into worst enemies and he had no idea how to stop the downward spiral. They had to hit bottom soon.

He put his head under the water and let it run through his hair. He couldn't begin to explain what he felt. It was like every time he saw the blonde, with his incessant laughter and chatter, he wanted to knock him out. Why? He didn't even know. Maybe because it was the exact opposite of his nature. Or maybe it was because that smile looked so good on him. He just had to wipe it off of his face to make himself feel normal. To make himself forget the way his heart sped up every time the blonde smiled.

He dried off and changed into a tshirt and shorts. Then he exited the bathroom and took his place on the opposite end of the room from the blonde, rolling out his sleeping bag and lying flat on his back. Deep down somewhere in his heart, he felt a bit of niggling that might be called guilt.

Naruto didn't smile so much anymore. And he knew the fault was his own.

**a/n: **So, here's a new little project I came up with. It was driving me crazy and making me unable to work on my last chapter of TGILC or the new chapter of TMWW, so I wrote it down just to get it out of my head. Yes, it's another twist on something that's probably been done more than once before. This won't be long. I have in mind a three or four-shot. It's angsty and all that, but in the end it'll turn out the way we want it. Hope you like it. Please review?

**Shichuuka no Jutsu** - Four pillar home technique


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary:** Sasuke was back. Everything was supposed to be great right? Well then why was the team falling apart?

**Warnings:** SasuNaruSasu Yaoi, also Naruto will end up somewhat OOC. This will sometimes be a bit dark. In my little made up Narutoverse, Naruto will show quite a bit of anger and resentment toward some people.

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Naruto; Lyrics by Mudvayne, who I don't own either.

Edited 12/21/08; Normally I don't add lyrics of the songs I listen to when I write. But I think it needs it for this story.

**

* * *

Beneath the Anger**

**Chapter 2**

_

* * *

In this hole  
That is me  
Left with a heart exhausted  
What's my release?  
What sets me free?  
Do you pull me up just to push me down again?_

_Peel me from the skin  
Tear me from the rind  
Does it make you happy now?_

_Tear meat from the bone  
Tear me from myself  
Are you feeling happy now? _

_xxx  
_

**Thoughts:** _'blah blah'_

_xxx  
_

_Day 1_

Sasuke woke up at the crack of dawn. There was only a hint of light outside, but his internal clock always woke him up this early, no matter what. He sat up and stretched, glancing at the shadow on the other side of the room. He was obviously still deep in sleep, if the rhythmic rise and fall of said shadow was any indication. He rolled his eyes. Naruto never was an early riser.

He got up and walked to the bathroom. It took him right past the space Naruto was occupying. The wild sleeper was sprawled out on his back, arms and legs spread. He swallowed the urge to kick him awake. On missions, they would always have to force him out of bed. Sometimes he wondered how in the world the dobe made it as a shinobi. He was way too oblivious to be any good. All Sasuke had to feel, hear or see was a slight movement or sound and it would immediately rouse him. But there the idiot was, out cold without a care. A person could come over with a kunai and slit his throat before he would even have a chance to scream. He rolled his eyes in exasperation.

Next, he went to the kitchen and grabbed an apple. He searched through the cabinets hoping to find some coffee. He was NOT a morning person, never has been. He had just trained his body to rise early. Either that or the frequent nightmares would wake him. However, he was eventually introduced to the wonders of coffee by Karin. At first he didn't want to try it, just because he knew she'd take it the wrong way and end up clinging to him thinking it was the beginning of something more. But after days of hearing her annoying begging, he grudgingly drank the dark liquid she offered him. All it took was one cup. After that, he became addicted and had a cup every morning. The bitter taste had him wide awake like nothing else could. He found what he was looking for when he pulled open the last cupboard. _'Yes!'_ He grabbed the coffee grounds and the filter and set the coffee maker going. Then he walked back to his sleeping bag and sat on top of it, deciding to entertain himself with seeing how long it would take for the blonde to wake up while he waited for his coffee.

Naruto shifted in his sleep. He felt like he was being watched. And it was disrupting his rest. He growled and turned over. But it didn't help. Finally unable to go back to sleep, he blearily opened his eyes. Rubbing the sleep from them, the first thing he saw was his stoic new roommate. His fuzzy gaze suddenly turned into a glare of irritation. Why did the first thing he see have to be him?

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the glare.

Naruto wanted, so badly, to smack that look off of that teme's perfect face. Dammit, even when he woke up, he looked good. Why couldn't the teme look like crap with bad bed hair and rumpled clothes when he woke up? And a case of morning breath wouldn't hurt either. Stupid bastard probably figured he was too good to have bed hair and bad breath. He jumped up, already having talked himself into an annoyed state of mind, and went to the bathroom. When he came out, he made his way to the kitchen and grabbed an apple of his own. He sat directly across from Sasuke and made a loud show of biting into the apple just to see if it would irritate him.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at the lame attempt to goad him. He got up, not even acknowledging the blonde on his way to the kitchen and grabbed his strong black coffee. He could easily deal with the dobe's idiocy after he'd had his coffee.

Naruto watched the brunette walk back in sipping from a mug. "What is that?"

"Coffee."

"EWW...you drink that crap?" He stuck his tongue out at the thought of how horrible it tasted.

"It's not crap. But obviously, you're too immature to understand."

"What? Who the hell are you calling immature?"

"You're the only other person I see here. Seriously, your idea of good food is ramen, so how could you possibly understand something as refined as coffee?"

"Cocky bastard! There's nothing wrong with my ramen. Ramen is the best! Way better than that crap you call coffee. And don't you dare talk to me like I'm inferior to you!"

"I'll talk to you however I want. And you _are _inferior to me. Once a dead last always a dead last." Naruto growled.

"Well if I'm such a dead last, how come I was able to bring you back?"

"...I was weak."

"Yeah right. You're just using that as an excuse because you couldn't stop me. You refuse to admit that I'm better than you."

"Yeah, like that would ever happen. There's nothing to admit because_ I_ am better than _you_. You wish you could be half as good as me. Maybe then you'd have a chance at your naive idealistic dream of becoming Hokage."

Naruto blinked. Sasuke saw a flash of hurt before it was gone. Without a word, Naruto got up and walked away from the dark haired shinobi. He didn't care which direction he went, as long as it was out of his sight. His feet ended up taking him to the kitchen.

Sasuke cursed to himself and slammed a fist against the floor the moment the blonde left the room. Why was it that every time he opened his mouth to say something to Naruto, the words that came out were like poison?

And the minutes and hours slowly rolled ahead...

* * *

It was now late in the afternoon and Sasuke was surprised that the dobe had stayed quiet for so long. Not a peep, hardly a fidget came from that side of the room. It was almost unnerving. The dobe wouldn't even look at him. Ok, sure, what he said was a bit on the mean side, but it was nothing the dobe wasn't used to hearing from him. He refused to believe the blonde was still hurt by what he said. He and Sakura have said all kinds of things to him over the years. Why would this be any different? Well, alright, maybe the bit about the hokage was going a little too far. But dammit, Naruto shouldn't have baited him into arguing before he drank his cup of coffee! But still, Naruto always bounced back...right?

A little voice in the back of his head kept giving him the answer he didn't want to hear.

Naruto sat in his little corner of the world wishing for a weapon. Somehow, whoever holed them up in here - he had a feeling the old hag had something to do with it - made sure not to provide any sharp objects that could be turned into weapons. He couldn't wait to get out of this place. Why would she even lock the two of them together? She already knew he and the teme would be at each other's throats.

He refused to even look at the teme. How dare he! Damn bastard. Even after all this time, he refuses to acknowledge him. It hurt. And yet, it pissed him off because he always figured he'd finally gotten over his childish need to have Sasuke's respect. But deep down it was still there. He didn't care anymore what the rest of Konoha thought of him. But, he did care what Sasuke thought. He should've known, though, that the bastard would never give him any recognition.

The part that saddened him though, yet angered him at the same time, was that deep down Sasuke was right. No matter how hard he worked to prove himself, people still saw him the same way. To the village, he wasn't a shinobi. He was the Kyuubi, a monster, murderer of their families. It was starting to take more and more energy on his part not to hate them for their constant blind bigotry. He didn't want to hate anyone. And he didn't want to hate his home. But becoming hokage was seeming more and more like a pipe dream, if the way the council reacted to Tsunade was any indication. She only hinted at the possibility that she _might_ choose him as her apprentice and they went into an uproar. He could hear it from his place outside the chambers as he waited. A good two thirds of the council considered him to be too volatile, too much of a liability with the possibility of the seal ever breaking. He was sure they'd be willing to accept any other one of the rookie nine, as long as it wasn't him. Even Sasuke.

He sighed and tried to swallow down his growing resentment and glanced over at the original cause of his ire. Sasuke had the nerve to be brooding. Brooding! If anyone should be brooding, it should be him. Damn Uchiha! He was still the most eligible bachelor in Konoha - his status hadn't changed, even though he had been a traitor to the village. He had absolutely nothing to worry about. It must be nice to be able to leave the village but still be able to come back with the council's blessing.

Naruto had often wondered if his teammate ever regretted leaving. Knowing him, probably not.

"Ne…Teme?"

Sasuke looked up, shocked to hear his roommate's voice. "Hn."

"…uh…"

"Spit it out dobe or leave me alone." _'Gah!'_ Sasuke was starting to feel like he should just keep his mouth shut from now on. Nothing would ever be resolved between them as long as his quick trigger mouth kept making things worse.

Naruto glared indignantly before asking his question. "Was it worth it?"

Sasuke raised a brow, not believing he would ask him that. "What?"

Naruto looked away from the intense stare. His voice began again, this time in a whisper. "I said was it all worth it? Leaving Konoha? Leaving your team? Going to the snake? Everything? Was it worth it?"

Sasuke stared at the strands of blonde hair that covered the tanned face so the vulnerable blue eyes couldn't be seen. He had never been one to sugar coat. And he wasn't about to start now. But still, he hesitated.

"Well?"

"...Yes."

There was silence for quite a while. Naruto finally sighed in resignation. "I…I just don't understand you."

Sasuke shrugged. "You never have. That's your problem. I am an avenger. It's all I am. It's all I have," he replied in a cold voice.

"But it's not-"

"Yes it is Naruto."

"But Sas-"

"Why do you care?" Sasuke asked, eyes narrowed as his temper flared once again.

"Because friends care. I thought I was yours."

He snorted. "I don't need any friends." He looked away and out the window.

"Everyone needs friends, even you bastard."

"Why does it bother you so much Naruto?"

"It's just…I don't see why you couldn't have stayed here and trained. We could've helped you."

Sasuke turned his head back to Naruto, his eyes cold. "I didn't want or need any help dobe!"

Naruto chuckled humorlessly while his voice took on a sarcastic and accusatory tone. "Of course you didn't. You're the big bad Uchiha that can do everything all by yourself. Well, if you didn't need or want any help, why did you pick up a whole new team?"

Damn him for learning logic while he was away. Sasuke wasn't about to let him know he had a point and just stared at Naruto, not saying a word. Naruto stared back, refusing to back down from the question. The staring match went on for almost a minute before Naruto saw Sasuke's lips twist into a slow smirk.

"Jealous dobe?"

God, he hated that smirk! Naruto wanted to punch the arrogant look off his face. "You wish teme," he bit out.

"Actually, it seems more like _you _wish."

Naruto scowled and clenched a fist. "The only thing I wish is that I could smash my fist in your stupid face."

"Go ahead and try dobe. You won't even get close to it." Sasuke glared and jumped up into a stance.

Naruto, never one to back down, ran toward him and threw a punch which met nothing but air as Sasuke dodged.

"Oh come on, you can do better than that dobe." The Uchiha taunted. Naruto growled in anger. He was not going to be taunted by the bastard.

"I'll kill you teme!" He threw another punch. Sasuke dodged. And another. Sasuke dodged again. Naruto growled again, completely aggravated.

"Quit dodging and fight me dammit!" Naruto yelled emphasizing it with another punch, which Sasuke ducked. Naruto roared angrily and threw punches left and right. Sasuke was able to dodge most of them even without the sharingan. Taijutsu never was Naruto's strong suit, anyway, but his anger was making him sloppy. Finally the Uchiha grew tired of playing dodge and grabbed the fist, yanked the blonde closer and stared him down.

Sasuke would never admit it. He'd never be able to live it down. He loved making the dobe angry because he wanted to see that fire in the expressive blue eyes. It did something strange to his insides, but he liked it.

"Why are you so angry dobe?" He asked in that dark smooth voice.

_'That voice should be illegal.'_ That was Naruto's first thought as he glared back breathing hard. But he was too angry to wonder why he had that passing thought. He was angry at Sasuke for way too many things. But he wasn't about to enumerate. "Because your face pisses me off." He growled and then whipped his leg around and tripped Sasuke causing him to fall to the floor. But Sasuke still didn't let go of the hand and yanked Naruto with him to the floor. He took advantage of the surprised blonde, rolling on top of him and pinning him down. Naruto struggled but couldn't get away. "Get off of me."

"Quit struggling dobe."

"No...Get off teme."

"Why should I? I'm quite comfortable here." Sasuke smirked, knowing it would piss his teammate off even more. Naruto snarled and bucked his hips.

Unfortunately, that action caused a very unwanted reaction.

Pleasure shot through Naruto and his eyes widened. He stopped struggling and laid flat trying to stop himself from blushing and prayed that Sasuke didn't notice. His prayers were answered because Sasuke was so intently glaring down at the blonde, he hardly noticed what Naruto had done, nor did he catch the change in Naruto's now tense form.

"What is your problem with me dobe?" He glowered at the blonde in exasperation gripping his shoulders shaking the dobe before letting go. "First you follow me all over the shinobi nations and beyond trying to get me to come home when I continually told you to leave me alone. But now that you finally have me back you act like you hate me."

As soon as Naruto saw that Sasuke wasn't holding him down anymore, he pushed him off, then jumped up and walked away, trying to calm down in more ways than one. "Me hate you? You're the one that acts like you hate me! You've hardly talked to me since you've been back in Konoha. You're such a arrogant bastard, walking around like you're God's gift to the world just because you're an almighty Uchiha and the entire village loves you so much. Ever since you've been back in Konoha, when you do speak, it's only to insult me." he spat bitterly.

"I've insulted you for years. It's never bothered you before. Why should it now?"

"This is not the same and you know it! You never said things so cruel and hateful to me before. What happened to you? Why are you like this?" Naruto's voice slowly changed octaves until he was yelling.

"Why am I like this? Oh, I don't know...Maybe because I didn't want to come back!" Sasuke yelled back, punching his hand against the nearest wall for emphasis.

Naruto threw his hands up and out in frustration. "Why not? You did what you wanted. You got your revenge. Why wouldn't you want to come home?"

"Because I was just fine on my own!"

"You were close to dying out there Sasuke!"

There was a moment of silence, only interrupted by Sasuke's deep sigh while he ran a hand through his hair and turned away from the emotionally charged cobalt gaze.

"Maybe...maybe that's what I wanted." he mumbled.

Naruto stared in shock at the words that he thought just came from the paler man's lips. He only just barely heard the whispered mumble and wondered if he heard correctly. "What did you say?"

"Nothing..."

"That wasn't nothing teme."

"Just shut up about it dobe. I'm not repeating myself."

"No! What the...You...You planned on dying out there didn't you?" Sasuke rounded on him and looked at him once before looking away. And when he spoke, the voice was soft and he sounded almost defeated.

"Dobe, just leave it alone. I'm not discussing this with you." Sasuke walked away and disappeared into the bathroom, the only room he could lock himself into.

Naruto stared at the bathroom door, this newest revelation leaving him stunned. He wasn't sure what to think at the moment. He closed his eyes and ran his hand through his spikes. Most people would've been shocked at the revelation that Sasuke had planned to die. But not Naruto. He understood why Sasuke might've felt that he wouldn't live through his fight with Itachi. But he didn't understand why Sasuke still would want to die now that he was back. Even as an ex-traitor the Uchiha got more respect from people than he did. And he was the loyal one who did everything for Konoha. Besides, didn't Sasuke want to revive his clan? You can't do that when you're dead.

Another hour passed in complete silence - Naruto's boredom induced finger tapping not withstanding - before Sasuke reappeared. And he said absolutely nothing as he went to the kitchen and rifled through the cabinets for something to eat. The atmosphere surrounding the two was almost stifling. Sasuke didn't want to talk about it and Naruto didn't know what to say.

The problem is Naruto knew Sasuke didn't want to talk about it. And Sasuke knew Naruto wanted to say something but was too uncomfortable to bring it up.

But since neither male opened their mouths, it remained silent.

Sasuke came out of the kitchen after ten minutes carrying two cups of steaming instant ramen. Instead of going to his side of the room though, he held out one for Naruto.

Naruto just looked at him like he was insane. Well, Sasuke could understand since he figured hell would freeze over before he would ever eat instant ramen. But there wasn't anything else that wouldn't take too long and he was hungry. Dark brows furrowed and he glared at the blonde.

"Usuratonkachi, hurry up before I toss it out."

Blue eyes went wide at the blasphemous threat and Naruto jumped up to grab the cup and sat back down happily munching away. Sasuke walked away to sit on his sleeping bag again. Naruto had already finished his cup before Sasuke had gotten through half of his. Somewhere in his heart, Sasuke was relieved that at least one thing about Naruto hadn't changed.

He still loved his ramen.

* * *

The sun was setting and the two were still silent, but at least it was a more companionable one.

Suddenly, there was a puff of smoke and before them stood Kakashi with that one-eyed smile. Matching glares and twitching eyes came from both sides of the room. Kakashi ignored what would probably be an enormous amount of killer intent if the two had their chakra and waved his hand. "Hello boys."

Twin growls were heard.

"I'm glad you're both so happy to see me."

"You did this didn't you?" Naruto yelled and pointed at the scarecrow, who held up his hands in mock surrender.

"Me? I had nothing to do with this. This was all the hokage's idea."

"Why?" Sasuke asked.

"I think you already know that." Kakashi leaned against the wall lazily with his hands in his pockets. "She's had enough of the two of you and decided to give you both the chance to work things out for yourselves without making everyone else miserable in the process."

"By sticking us both in the same room? That's a real bright idea." Sasuke deadpanned.

"What the hell is that old hag thinking? I'll kill him if I stay in here with him any longer." Naruto declared.

"Che...you can't kill me. You couldn't even touch me a few hours ago. If anything, I'd kill you. Either that or I'll die from being stuck with your idiocy for too long."

"If I don't die from your being such a bastard."

"That doesn't even make any freaking sense dobe!"

Naruto was up and charging again. "Teme!"

Sasuke went into a defensive stance.

Naruto never touched him. Sasuke smirked.

Kakashi had the blonde by the collar of his shirt. "Maa maa...calm down you two. She never said you couldn't leave." Two pairs of eyes shifted back to the smiling copy ninja.

"You just have to show you can get along without arguing or fighting for longer than five minutes." Both sets of shoulders drooped and glares returned. Kakashi shrugged.

"Hey, don't look at me, I'm just the messenger. Anyways, I was just here to check on the both of you. And now that I've done my duty, I'm off."

Naruto and Sasuke caught each other's eyes and both conveyed the same thought. They ran quickly to latch onto Kakashi, who was in the midst of making hand signs, before he disappeared. Just before their fingers grasped onto his clothes, he jumped up to the ceiling and hung on by his feet with chakra. Both boys looked up with growls. Kakashi chuckled. "See, I knew if you put your minds to it you both could work together." He smiled behind his mask.

Two sets of arms crossed over chests.

"Does that mean we can leave now?" Naruto asked.

"Uh...let me think...No." Sasuke could swear he saw a smirk behind that mask. "Well, ja."

"No! Wait!" Naruto yelled. With a wave and a poof of smoke, Kakashi was gone. "DAMMIIIIIITTTT!"

Sasuke glared at the spot Kakashi had been standing in before turning away and going back to his bedroll.

Once again, there was silence.

But this time it was because both teammates were plotting ways to kill Kakashi and Tsunade.

**a/n:** Well I hope I don't throw you off with the constant switches of attitude. But it seems just like the two to get along one minute and then be at each other's throats the next. Especially because of all the anger/tension/frustration that's built up. And then there was the bit with Kakashi...I just couldn't help adding a bit of him. So yeah, anyway, hope you enjoyed it. And thanks for your reviews! Keep them comin. :)


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n: **Thank you for your reviews. As you can tell, Naruto and Sasuke have quite the love/hate relationship eh? And of course, they also carry loads of emotional baggage, which you saw some of Sasuke's in the last chapter. You'll see more of Naruto's in this chapter. And I warn you again, Naruto is quite a bit more bitter about the way Konoha treats him. But things will get better for them both in the end. Enjoy!

**Summary: **Sasuke was back. Everything was supposed to be great right? Well then why was the team falling apart?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or Three Days Grace obviously

**Warning: **SasuNaruSasu yaoi

**

* * *

Beneath the Anger**

**Chapter 3**

**

* * *

**_Every time we lie awake  
After every hit we take  
Every feeling that I get  
But I haven't missed you yet_

_Only when I stop to think about it_

_I hate everything about you  
Why do I love you  
You hate everything about me  
Why do you love me_

_xxx  
_

_Day 2_

The second day began much like the first. Silence.

After yesterday's visit by Kakashi, neither had said a word before retiring to their separate sides of the large room. Both of them had unknowingly been having the same thoughts that involved murdering their sensei and then going after the hokage. However that unity of thought didn't translate to them getting along any better.

This morning, they awakened silently. Both showered and ate without exchanging any pleasantries. Naruto didn't bother Sasuke about his coffee. Sasuke didn't taunt Naruto about his ramen. Then they sat back down in their respective spots and proceeded to ignore each other.

The silence this time had nothing to do with their sensei or the hokage. That could easily be dealt with by either of them after they were finally out of their forced confinement.

No, it was because the two weren't sure what to do now. They had so many things to say, yet most of it remained unsaid.

And it was bothering them both.

* * *

The sun was high in the sky when Naruto finally hit his limit. He was so tired of sitting around with nothing to do. He was bored out of his mind! He needed to do something. Anything.

He glanced across the room to a motionless silent Uchiha. It was enough to almost make him growl. How could he sit there so calm and composed? To him, it was inhuman and almost unnerving. But the longer he sat with nothing to occupy his mind, the more he envied the teme for being able to remain completely still. If Kakashi came back he'd have to request a book or a game or he'd go crazy. Heck, right now he'd almost be willing to read Ero-sennin's perverted books if it meant he would no longer be so bored. He wanted to curse the bastard for putting him in this position.

He refused to admit that their predicament was his fault as well.

"I'm so bored..."

Sasuke flicked his eyes up toward Naruto for a moment before lowering them again. He had to agree with the dobe, although he wasn't about to tell him that. There was nothing to do but sit around and since they weren't exactly social anymore – not that he was ever social, that was the dobe's thing – there was nothing to do but think.

And thinking, for him, was not a good thing.

Because he thought of the past, thought of the present, of why he left, what he gained, what he lost. He thought of Itachi, thought of Orochimaru, thought of his teammates, thought of Naruto. It was a vicious cycle that always came back to him...Naruto. It surprised him. Itachi wasn't the one that occupied his mind the most anymore. Naruto had silently taken over that position. He looked up at Naruto then, who was fidgeting. He wished he could read him like he used to. He knew what to expect then. Of course, he had lost the right once he left. That fleeting thought brought a stab of guilt. Naruto's changed so much now that setting him off meant something very different than before. Before it was simple…they'd bicker, then they'd provoke each other into a fight that he'd eventually win, the dobe would grumble about it, he'd brag, then Naruto would yell about him being a bastard and drag him off to eat ramen. But that never happened anymore and he wondered if the change was because of him. Or was it something else?

Now they'd just fight. It would start as a spar, then words would fly…hurtful angry words. He would end up responding in kind. And then all hell would break loose.

He thought back to the last day they fought before their imprisonment in this silent cabin. What would've happened if they hadn't been forcibly stopped? Their power could easily result in tremendous amounts of damage. Hell, they could've leveled at least part of the village.

He sighed and closed his eyes, laying his head on his knees. This endless cycle had to stop. He wanted his…best friend back.

But how?

* * *

_An hour later_

"Bored bored bored bored bored bored bored bored..."

"Dobe."

"...bored bored bored bored bored bored bored bored..."

"Naruto."

Naruto looked up this time with a glare. "...bored bored bored bored bored bored bored bored..."

Oh hell no, he didn't just try to bait him....

"...bored bored bored bored bored bored bored bored..." Alright, that's it.

"DOBE SHUT THE HELL UP!"

"Why should I?"

"I know you're doing this just to annoy me."

"Che...not everything revolves around you bastard."

"Dammit Naruto! What is wrong with you?" Sasuke glared at him with a vengeance.

Naruto stared back defiantly. "You're a genius. You figure it out."

Sasuke wasn't even sure how he got to the other side of the room so fast. But the result was Naruto being held a foot off the ground by the pale hand around his throat.

"What the hell is your problem dobe? I was just minding my own business and you still gotta piss me off." Naruto growled and tried to kick the body away from him.

"Maybe because just looking at you pisses me off!"

What the… He hadn't even talked to him today. What could he have done? "How the hell are you so pissed off at me when I haven't said two words to you today?"

Naruto threaded his arms in between Sasuke's and broke the chokehold then pushed him away. "Because I'm sick to death of being stuck here with you!"

"Well, I'm sick of being stuck here too, but that's not my fault!"

"Yes it is!"

"I'm only taking half the blame. You're just as guilty as I am."

"But you were the one who started it."

"We were sparring dobe!"

"That wasn't a spar! You were trying to kill me. Who uses chidori during a spar?"

"Who uses a rasengan?"

"I only performed it because you were about to try to electrocute me."

"Dammit! There's no winning with you is there?"

Sasuke stood staring, completely frustrated, unable to associate the Naruto he knew with this one. This Naruto was just so...angry. Why was he so angry? Was it him? Was it something else? He shook his head silently…he didn't have a clue. And it bothered him so much more than he wanted to admit. He felt something in his heart as he witnessed Naruto's distress. He was watching his friend turn into someone he couldn't even recognize. Someone had to fix this...fix him.

Is that why they were put here? To try to fix each other? He could lie to himself and say that nothing was wrong with him, but he knew it was far from the truth. Leaning his head back against the wall, he closed his eyes and asked the question that had been going through his mind for weeks.

"What happened to you? What happened to the Naruto I knew...the happy go lucky, most unpredictable ninja Naruto?"

"He's gone." Naruto replied, muffled by the hands he ran over his face.

"Well, I want him back."

Naruto sighed and knocked the back of his head against the wall.

"I miss him." Sasuke continued almost cringing at his slight display of emotion.

"Liar." Naruto mumbled. "You don't care about me. No one does."

"Obviously I care or I wouldn't be talking to you. And when did you start becoming so negative?"

"Just shut up about it teme. I don't want to talk about it."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in frustration. "Oh, but you wanted me to bare my soul yesterday for you. Typical."

Naruto glared at him, but didn't say anything.

Sasuke sighed again. Fine, if the dobe wasn't going to say anything he would just have to keep pushing. It's worked before. "What did I do to make you so angry?"

Naruto turned away from the dark piercing eyes. "I told you teme, it's not always about you. Now let it go."

"No. I want to know."

"Teme..." he growled.

"Dammit Naruto! We're never gonna get out of this place unless we cooperate and we're never going to do that unless we talk."

"Oh sure, you think of this now, but you didn't think of this yesterday when I asked what your problem was."

"I..." Sasuke paused. The dobe did have a point. "Alright fine, if you talk I'll talk." Naruto glanced at him from the corner of his eye, a bit skeptical. Sasuke shrugged. "I'm serious."

Naruto's shoulders slumped and he mumbled, "You wouldn't understand..."

"Then make me understand!" Sasuke replied.

"You can't understand!" Naruto yelled walking away to stare out the window for a moment. "You'd never understand."

Sasuke crossed his arms and watched as Naruto stood at the window looking defeated. It was a foreign scene to him. Naruto never gave up. "Then explain it to me."

The blonde swiftly turned around and looked at Sasuke. "You're an Uchiha! This place loves you. To those people out there you're a damn god. The council praises you as the genius Uchiha, kisses your ass, and lets you do whatever you want."

"What are you talking about? The council had me under house arrest and under probation since I came back."

"See? That's exactly what I mean! You should've been dead. Dead!" He started pacing the floor like an agitated animal.

"What? Now you want me dead?" Sasuke looked incredulous.

"No! Dammit teme...that's not the point. You we're a traitor, you almost killed your fellow shinobi. You went to Konoha's worst enemy. What they gave you was hardly a sentence. That was slap on the wrist. But you wouldn't understand that would you?"

Sasuke opened his mouth to reply but never got the chance as Naruto answered his own question.

"No, because you don't know what it's like not to get a break. You've always gotten everything. You were Konoha's tragic figure and everyone lapped it up. Everyone felt sorry for the poor Uchiha who lost everything. People were practically ready to bow on the street for you when you were just a genin. You even got more training than the rest of us. But you didn't even appreciate it. Instead you ran off to Orochimaru because you weren't getting strong fast enough for your perfect Uchiha standards. And the damn council, all they see is your sharingan…they'd crawl on their hands and knees for you as long as you can breed little sharingan users for them."

"Dammit, I can't help what people think of me dobe. I never asked for that." Sasuke glared at the blonde, his own frustration mounting. Naruto suddenly stopped in front of him.

"It doesn't matter!" Naruto yelled letting out all of his frustration as he ranted on. "You get everything handed to you on a freakin silver platter while I have to work my ass off for people to even notice I exist. You're not the only person in the world who's had tragedy in their life. I was an orphan too! I lost my family just like you! But I didn't get any of the things you did. I never got any assistance. The academy didn't teach me squat. I never got the training I needed. I never even got a freaking smile. Instead, I was hated, beaten, poisoned, and kicked out of every restaurant in Konoha. I was stuck with a crappy orange jumpsuit that I actually couldn't stand because the store owners wouldn't let me buy anything else with the hope that I would get killed on a mission. The council wouldn't give me a break…as soon as I became a genin, they wouldn't let me get allowance anymore. I had to fend for myself. You wanna know why I eat ramen all the time? Just use your genius brains to think for just one second and you'd understand why! My own sensei wouldn't give me the time of day for the exams…he was too busy giving _you_ all the training you wanted. If not for Ero-sennin I wouldn't have had anyone to train me."

"Naruto..." Sasuke walked closer about to attempt to calm the agitated blonde down.

"Shut up! You want to know everything, I'm telling you everything." Naruto turned away from Sasuke with a growl. Then he started pacing again as he went on. "I almost died after I fought you. Not that anyone in the village cared…they'd have probably given you a freaking medal and a party for getting rid of the Kyuubi. But even after everything you did, you come back and they still love you. It's like you never left! I've done everything for this place...put my heart and soul into keeping the village safe and what do I get? Nothing. Someone else gets credit for my accomplishments, the council wants me confined to the village, and the villagers still throw whatever they can get their hands on at me. I get punished just for being alive. No matter what I do, they still hate me. And I'm _sick_ of it."

"Naruto..." Sasuke grabbed him by the shoulders. Naruto's head was down, the expressive blue eyes were hidden by blonde bangs, his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides.

"If I was the one that left, I'd have had anbu and hunter nins on me before I could get a mile out the village. I'd either be in the deepest prison they could find or dead." Naruto finally raised his head and looked at Sasuke, his eyes suspiciously wet. "You could _never_ understand what I have to go through."

Sasuke hand, unbidden, rose and brushed a blonde lock away from the watery blue eyes. "What do you want me to do dobe? I didn't ask for any of this?"

"I don't know...I don't..." Naruto sighed and backed away then sat on the floor and rubbed his hands over his face. "I'm just so tired. I'm tired of being everyone's scapegoat for something I didn't do. I'm tired of the council treating me like nothing but their weapon to unleash when they need to and then put me away when they don't want me around. I'm tired of Akatsuki trying to catch me. I'm tired of being alone." He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall as he revealed something he had never admitted to anyone. "I hate this place. I don't want to, but I do. But most of all, I hate you."

Sasuke felt like he'd just been stabbed in the heart. "Then why did you bring me back?"

"I don't know anymore." He replied looking away from his teammate.

"Do..." The Uchiha hesitated. "Do you really hate me?"

"Yes...I do. Because you left me here alone."

Sasuke's eyes went wide. "I didn't think you'd care that much."

"I did."

"I thought you hated me."

"No...I didn't."

Sasuke sighed and sat down next to the blonde and slowly, his hand reached out, covering the tanned one.

"I...I'm sorry."

Naruto turned to look at his companion. Sasuke had apologized. He thought he'd never hear an apology come from the Uchiha's mouth. And he actually meant it! It shocked him. He really wasn't sure what to do after that.

After so much noise it felt strange for it to suddenly become so silent. Then he remembered that Sasuke was supposed to talk.

"Did you...really plan to die?"

Sasuke tensed and looked down. "Yes. I always thought that when I killed Itachi, my injuries would be too severe to live. I knew I was strong, but so was he. I wasn't delusional enough to think that it would be an easy battle. I was content knowing that I would have accomplished my goal. Even if I died, my family would've been avenged. Besides, I didn't want to come back. I didn't want to face this place...face Kakashi...face you. If you hadn't dragged me back, I wouldn't be here. Even if I had lived through the injuries, I would have gone in the opposite direction."

"But why?"

"Because both of you were right. I thought getting revenge would make me feel better. Instead it only made me feel worse. I didn't feel victorious at all. I just felt empty. I had killed my only connection to my family. And I know deep down my parents would not have wanted this."

Sasuke sighed and looked at the floor.

"Sometimes...I hate Konoha too. I never wanted all the attention. The training yes, the attention, not so much. I hate the way the elders try to manipulate everyone. I know the council is just waiting for me to pick a bunch of girls and breed like an animal so they can repopulate the Uchiha compound as quickly as they can. That's one of the only reasons I'm still alive after the hearing. I know there's hundreds of girls ready and willing even though they don't know me. They just see my looks and my name. You would think after all these years they'd take no for an answer, but they don't. And for your information dobe, I'm not blind. At least not since I've been back. I've seen the way this place treats you. You don't deserve it. It makes me hate Konoha even more. It's enough to make me want to leave again. I'd probably be better off."

"Then why are you still here?"

"Because of you." Sasuke shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "I only stay here for you."

"But…why?"

"Hell if I know." Sasuke rolled his eyes and looked up to the ceiling. "You are the most annoying and obnoxious person I've ever met. You're way too cheery, well at least you were. You're too bright. You're a disorganized mess most of the time. And yet, you can get under my skin like no one else. You drive me crazy."

"Right, like you're any better. You're a complete bastard. You're antagonizing and irritating. You're a conceited and condescending ass. You treat your friends and teammates like crap. I hate your stupid duck butt hair, your little Uchiha symbol brandings on everything you own. I hate that you act like you're freakin perfect."

"And yet you kept following me around the world."

Naruto sighed and glared at the source of his irritation. "I hate you."

"Hn...the feeling's mutual." Sasuke replied with a smirk.

Silence reigned for a while as they both reflected over what they had now learned. Naruto was tired of sitting still, though. He'd done it for almost two whole days and it was killing him. He jumped up and stretched.

"So...Wanna spar teme?"

Sasuke looked up at his words. He stood up and stretched. "Hn."

Naruto grinned and moved his sloppy pile into a corner, while Sasuke more neatly did the same. Both of them moved into a stance.

"Ready dobe?"

"Always am."

And then it began. They started off slowly just warming up after not having done anything the last two days. But once they were loosened up the real spar began.

And while the punches and kicks connected, for once, there wasn't anger or hate behind them. It was the first time they'd sparred without truly fighting each other in a long time. They sparred just for the fun of sparring with each other.

Then Sasuke saw something he wasn't sure he'd ever see again.

Naruto smiled.

He couldn't help his lips from tilting upwards as well.

Until a punch almost got him in the face. He moved his head just in time and spun away twisting his leg into a low spinning kick that Naruto didn't recognize in time. The blonde tripped and fell backward but grabbed Sasuke's shirt on the way down causing them both to tumble to the floor. Naruto's head, somewhat painfully, bounced off the floor at the same moment Sasuke's head fell forward.

And somehow their lips collided.

Their eyes widened.

Sasuke pulled away, shocked at the irony. They'd been in this situation before. Naruto stared unblinkingly.

But unlike the last time, neither jumped away yelling and scrubbing their lips.

Unlike the last time, there were no fangirls to scream bloody murder against the blonde for ruining their chances at Sasuke's first kiss.

And unlike the last time, they found themselves kissing again.

**a/n:** I couldn't resist an accidental kiss reference again. I swear, I think it's the only way the two of them would ever figure out their feelings XD Anyways, thanks for reading and reviews are appreciated. One more chapter to go!


	4. Chapter 4

**a/n:** Sorry to say, this is the last installment of this baby. It's been fun writing. Thanks for all of your continuous reviews. They always make my day. This should be an interesting role reversal for everyone. As you know, Naruto is usually the one doing the pushing while Sasuke ignores it all. Well, not this time... And so, after reading all the bitterness and angst in this story, consider this somewhat angsty, somewhat lighthearted, a little bit sweet, and definitely hot chapter your reward eh? :)

**Summary: **Sasuke was back. Everything was supposed to be great right? Well then why was the team falling apart?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or Dig by Incubus. I love the song, take a listen if you've never heard it.

**Warning: **SasuNaruSasu yaoi; Lemon warning.

**

* * *

Beneath the Anger**

**Chapter 4**

_

* * *

We all have a weakness  
But some of ours are easy to identify  
Look me in the eye  
And ask for forgiveness  
We'll make a pact to never speak that word again  
Yes you are my friend_

_We all have something that digs at us  
At least we dig each other  
So when weakness turns my ego up  
I know you'll count on the me from yesterday_

_If I turn into another  
Dig me up from under what is covering  
The better part of me  
Sing this song  
Remind me that we'll always have each other  
When everything else is gone_

_xxx  
_

Sasuke's eyes widened when he realized their lips met. Immediately breaking the kiss, he blinked and looked down at the surprised blonde, feeling as shocked as him. He couldn't believe he was in this situation again. It must be a curse. Licking his lips, he realized something unnerving...he liked it. And dammit, if he was always going to be cursed with kissing Naruto, he would make damn sure it was done deliberately!

Propping himself up by his hands, Sasuke made himself comfortable and leaned down to brush his lips against Naruto's tentatively, testing the waters so to speak. It was almost as if he was expecting Naruto to either bite his lip in anger or punch him for attempting something so bold. When he saw Naruto close his eyes though, he smirked and pressed harder against the surprisingly soft lips.

Naruto, in the back of his mind, was screaming bloody murder for allowing Sasuke to kiss him again, but somewhere along the line it shut down. Something about it felt...amazingly right. Giving in, he kissed him back. His hands of their own accord moved to the slim hips and found the slip of pale skin that peeked out beneath the hem of the t-shirt.

Sasuke swiped his tongue over Naruto's lips and dived inside the moment those lips parted. Soon their tongues were clashing, twisting, swirling - the kiss becoming as much of a battle as their usual spars.

Naruto finally pulled away abruptly, breathing hard, staring up with half lidded eyes at the pale brunette. Sasuke sat up on his knees still straddling Naruto's legs. The blonde sat up, still somewhat dazed by what had just happened.

"What the hell?" He muttered, unable to take his eyes off of the slightly swollen lips that were in tantalizing close proximity, wondering if his looked the same. How the hell did this happen again?

Sasuke took advantage of Naruto's inner monologue to get up, raking his hand through his hair, trying to get his suddenly raging emotions and hormones back under control. Naruto still hadn't moved, watching as the Uchiha calmly looked down at him like this sort of thing happened every day. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut shaking his head. Confusing feelings took hold of his jumbled brain and he jumped to his feet, quickly brushed past Sasuke, looking to find escape in the bathroom.

He missed the flicker of undisguised hurt in the dark eyes. Within seconds it was hidden behind the usual Uchiha impassiveness.

* * *

Naruto splashed water over his face for the fifth time. He looked in the mirror mentally scolding himself. What the hell was he doing? And with Sasuke of all people?

He wasn't supposed to be kissing his best friend...no, teammate...well, he figured now that they'd started talking, maybe it would be back to best friends.

GAH!

Naruto shook his head while waving his arms. It didn't matter! They were best friends. Kisses didn't happen between friends!

Besides he liked girls?

'_For a bastard he sure has a talented tongue.'_

Didn't he?

Ah yes…blissful, that little state of mind called denial.

* * *

Sasuke was leaning against the wall when Naruto reappeared. He was cursing himself now. What could he have been thinking? What kind of spell did the dobe put him under to make him want to kiss him? Hell, he didn't even _like_ the dobe.

Sure, as a friend. But not this! He had a clan to revive. It was his duty as the last Uchiha...well, and there was that little thing about the council making it one of the conditions of his return. Damn elders. He still wasn't sure how he was actually going to do that, considering he refused to get within ten feet of a female besides his pink haired teammate. But still... The last he remembered of normal sex education – and he uses the term loosely considering his instruction came from Orochimaru and Kabuto...he still cringed at the visuals – male + male did not equal children.

What the...why was he even thinking about this? Should there even be anything to consider? Naruto was a friend..._just _a friend. Nothing more.

'_Then why did you kiss him?'_

A whim.

'_Uh huh…where have I heard __that__ before?'_

I don't know what you mean.

'Riiiight.'

Damn internal monologue. It made him admit that he felt something. He wished he could stab it with his Kusanagi.

He watched the object of his thoughts move from the bathroom to the kitchen. Then he heard the unmistakable sound of a package of instant ramen being opened.

Stupid dobe better not be trying to ignore him.

Three minutes later Naruto came out with his cup of ramen and completely avoided looking at Sasuke. Instead, he looked down resolutely, walked to his end of the room and sat down, then reverently - yet hurriedly - slurped up the hot noodles.

It irked Sasuke that Naruto was going to brush off what had happened, especially since his own stupid conscience wouldn't allow him that luxury. Sasuke growled and raised an eyebrow. "So you're just going to ignore this huh? Act like nothing happened?"

The chopsticks stopped halfway between cup and mouth.

"What do you want me to say teme? It was an accident." Naruto replied with no emotion, still not looking up.

"No...what happened at the academy was an accident. When you hit your head, and we collided, that was an accident. What happened afterward was definitely _not _an accident. And you kissing me back was no accident either. So don't you dare act like it didn't happen."

"Wow teme, I didn't know you could say so many words at once." Naruto responded with sarcasm.

"Dammit dobe! We need to talk about this!"

Naruto finally looked up defiantly, brows furrowed.

"Talk about what teme? There's nothing to talk about. It was a kiss. It happened. It's done. No hard feelings. I like girls. You like...you know what? I don't know what you like. But you have a clan to repopulate, so I guess you're in need of a girl to do that aren't you? Now are you happy? I talked."

Naruto went back to his ramen with a vicious kind of relish, not as much for the taste as for the hope that Sasuke would give up whatever it was he was trying to do.

Sasuke glared at the pigheaded blonde. Stupid idiot. In three strides he was on the other side of the room yanking the blonde to his feet by the front of his shirt making the fox container drop his ramen.

"Teme…look what y-" The breath was knocked out of him when Sasuke slammed him against the wall. He struggled against the body that was flush against him. "Let go of me!"

Sasuke growled again and grabbed the hands trying to push him off and pulled them over the blonde's head. Then he pressed his knee in between Naruto's thighs.

Naruto bit back a gasp as the knee brushed against a very sensitive part of his anatomy. He tried to hide his blush with a glare. "What the hell do you think you're doing teme!"

There was no answer except for Sasuke leaning his forehead against Naruto's and staring into the stormy blue eyes. In them he saw a bit of confusion, fear, desire, and something more he couldn't really identify.

"Tell me you don't feel it." He whispered.

"Feel what?" Naruto asked.

"Don't act like a dobe, Naruto. I know you aren't. If you try to tell me you don't feel this, then you are not only a liar, but a coward."

Sasuke waited. He'd said the words hoping Naruto would take the bait...which, of course, he did.

"Damn you teme. I'm no coward!"

"Then quit acting like one." Not giving Naruto a chance to say anything else, Sasuke smashed his lips against the blonde's. It was much shorter than the last one, but had just as much emotion behind it. And when Sasuke stepped away, letting Naruto go altogether, the blonde growled and yanked him back with two hands kissing him again.

Both pairs of eyes closed as they each succumbed to the feelings coursing through their veins. Sasuke bit Naruto's lip causing him to release a moan. Hands tentatively wandered over clothed bodies, both males unused to being touched in a caring way.

* * *

Tsunade sat bored in her office. Surprisingly, she missed her loud blonde gaki. It was too quiet without him causing trouble. She looked over her desk that was shockingly deprived of piles of paperwork. With a sigh, she shook her head. It must be bad when she's able to actually complete her paperwork.

So, for lack of anything better to do, she decided to check in on her favorite ramen-obsessed shinobi and see if the two rivals were making any progress. Taking the Third's crystal ball and placing it on her desk, she smiled and said the words. "Toomegane no Jutsu." Within seconds she was graced with a view inside the quickly made home.

She expected glaring battles, she expected shouting matches, she expected fighting.

What she did not expect was to see the two young men kissing the daylights out of each other. _'Well, that's...new...'_ Her head angled slightly to the left as she watched their hands roaming.

"Spying Tsunade-sama?"

The hokage started guiltily, a blush forming at being caught looking like a perverted voyeur - Which she wasn't. No definitely not! That was Jiraiya's department.

Turning toward the voice behind her, she found the lazy copy ninja looking over her shoulder at the image of his two not-so-innocent students. She glared at the man. "Get from behind my desk you pervert!"

"Hmm..." He transported himself to the front of her desk his arms crossed. "You're one to talk."

"I was not watching like that dammit!"

"Of course you weren't." Kakashi replied with a smirk even she could see under the mask. She twitched with the need to punch him through a wall.

"I was just checking on them to see if they were improving any."

"Sure." He gave her a smile. "And I bet you don't care what they're doing now as long as their relationship is improving. So you can turn off that jutsu now." He reached out a hand to grab the ball.

"NO!" That smirk appeared again....damn him.

"Uh huh...I thought so. You're nothing but a closet pervert."

"I am NOT!" Tsunade would have argued more had she not been assaulted with a new image that almost gave her a nosebleed. Hot damn, both those boys had great genes!

Kakashi moved to her side again to watch the proceedings. He decided to let things speak for themselves.

"Oh alright fine! Just another minute. Observation purposes."

"Of course."

* * *

Breaking apart only when the need for air outweighed the need for anything else, both of them stared intently at each other trying to catch their breath. Naruto felt Sasuke's hold on his wrists slacken and he broke the hold pushing Sasuke back, keeping his head down so his blonde bangs covered his eyes.

"Bastard." he growled.

Damn the teme for being right. Naruto didn't want to admit it, but there was something. This unidentifiable feeling is what made him keep running after the teme time and time again, dealing with rejection and painful heartbreak every time the avenger got away. It was what made him never give up on Sasuke no matter what kind of crap he kept spouting. To him, Sasuke had always been his teammate, his rival, his best friend, his...what?

What more could he be?

He looked up at Sasuke with that thought going through his head. Their eyes met and Naruto immediately felt his stomach flip in a way he hadn't experienced since back when he had a crush on Sakura.

_'Oh god...it can't be....There's no way...' _

Sasuke wondered what the idiot was thinking when he saw his eyes go wide, almost like he'd had an epiphany. He smirked and crossed his arms. "You finally sort things out in your head dobe? Or do you still need time to think?"

"Shut up teme." Naruto replied automatically, though without his usual vehemence, as he was too embarrassed at the sudden discovery of his heart's desire. He pouted and turned away with a blush.

Sasuke chuckled.

Naruto glared.

Sasuke raised a haughty brow.

"I hate you teme."

Sasuke challenged Naruto with another smirk. "Are you sure about that dobe?" Naruto's ever quick temper flared and he stalked to the object of his anger and too many other emotions to name, intent on kicking his ass.

"I'll wipe that smirk off your face bastard!"

With a haughty lift of his chin, Sasuke shrugged with his hands in his pockets, knowing he would make Naruto angrier by not fighting back.

"You're welcome to try dobe."

* * *

Kakashi chuckled as the two teammates started fighting. Tsunade glanced at him, confused as to what he found so humorous.

"What?"

"Hm?"

"What's so funny?"

"Oh." Kakashi leaned on the edge of the desk his eyes not leaving the crystal ball. "Foreplay."

Tsunade raised a thin eyebrow. "What?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Fighting...Foreplay. Interchangable concepts with those two. It's been happening for years, they just didn't get it."

Tsunade blinked. Then she threw her head back and just laughed.

* * *

Sasuke dodged the fist, ducked a kick, jumped over another kick and spun away to avoid another - all without his hands leaving his pockets. Naruto snarled and threw a series of punches finally connecting with Sasuke's chin.

"Dammit dobe!" Sasuke glared at the blonde from the floor using his hand to check his chin for damage while he stood back up. "You want me to stop dodging? Fine." Sasuke ran forward looking like he was about to throw a punch. Changing his mind at the last second, he whirled away, ending up behind Naruto and locked his arms around the raging blonde. Naruto tried to struggle and kick his way out of the hold, but the pale arms just got tighter.

"Quit fighting this..." Naruto continued his futile struggle. "Naruto."

Upon hearing his name, he stopped and shuddered. Never had he heard his name spoken in such a way. It was almost sinful the way the three syllables rolled from Sasuke's lips. He felt fingers slowly slide under his shirt and he tensed up again. "W-What are you doing?"

"Relax dobe." Sasuke said while slowly raising the t-shirt up and over Naruto's head. He took a moment to stare at the tanned back, smooth like silk, marred only by one solitary scar. Emotion flickered through the onyx orbs. He raised a finger to lightly trace over the scar, remembering the day he put his hand through his teammate's chest for the sake of power.

Naruto jumped slightly at the soft contact. His breath quickened as he felt the calloused finger tracing over the only major scar he had on his entire body. It was a constant reminder of what he considered to be his biggest failure. But really, could he consider it a failure anymore? Sasuke was here...with him.

He felt lips on the spot and gasped.

Sasuke had gotten on one knee and kissed the spot, a silent apology for hurting his best friend. Naruto turned to look at him, bewildered at the action.

In the blink of an eye, Sasuke had yanked a shocked Naruto down on his knees, then pushed him on his back and straddled him. He then sent a grin of superiority at the blonde before pressing his hips downward. Naruto gasped as their bodies pressed together, forgetting that just a a few moments ago, the two had been fighting. He raised his hips when their groins collided again and he was rewarded with hearing the usually stoic Uchiha let out a throaty groan.

"Naruto..." he groaned lowering his head to the tanned neck licking over the slightly jutting collarbone before nipping the sensitive skin there. Naruto's breathy moan was the only sound.

"S-Sasuke."

Sasuke slowly rocked against the blonde, watching as the cerulean eyes clouded over with lust. Naruto's mouth opened slightly and his hooded eyes fell closed when hands slowly marked a trail up his tanned chest, nails raking over the nipples causing the blonde to arch his back off the floor with a choking needy sound coming from his lips.

Suddenly, all movement stopped and Naruto blinked open his eyes to a view of Sasuke kneeling at his feet. The Uchiha smirked at the dazed blonde and splayed his thin fingers against Naruto's legs, moving slowly up spread thighs, the edge of his knuckles deliberately brushing against the bulge in the dark pants.

"T-Teme...stop that." Naruto squeaked.

"You don't want me to...not really." Sasuke unzipped the black pants, revealing a pair of bright boxers - why was he not surprised? "This..." He ran his fingertip slowly up and down the bulge, "tells me different."

Naruto gallantly tried to fight against the building need between his legs, to no avail. His eyes fluttered closed, his whole body reacting to the deliberate strokes. He hardly noticed as his pants were pulled off. He did suddenly notice though when the teme was grinding against him, this time a bit more desperately. He bit his lip to keep from moaning.

Sasuke had practically ripped off his pants and was back on the floor grinding against Naruto. He was tired of teasing and he refused to lie to himself anymore.

He wanted Naruto.

He wanted him now.

And he was going to have him.

His mouth latched onto a hardened nipple sucking hard without stopping the fast paced grinding. Naruto's fingers dug into his teammate's hips, pulling him closer, the tension in his body revealing how close he was. Sasuke could feel it and twisted his hips, grinding into him harder. A second later Naruto was yelling out as his body spasmed. Soon after Sasuke did the same and then collapsed on top of Naruto panting.

It took a while, but when Naruto's head finally cleared, he realized something slightly disturbing. The teme was on top of him laying between his spread thighs. He glared up at the brunette who had that annoying self-satisfied smirk on his face. _'Oh hell no!'_ He wasn't about to allow the bastard to even _think _he would settle for being uke. No way, no how. Uzumaki Naruto was no one's uke. Besides, Sasuke was prettier!

Wait...that didn't come out quite right...

But the bastard's name was Sas_uke_, after all.

So, with a growl he rolled them both over, now looking down on the Uchiha with his own smirk of superiority. Sasuke glared up at the blonde.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Naruto's response was to rip off the dark blue boxers Sasuke was sporting, ignoring the threats yelled at him. Then he wrapped his hand around the man's semi-hard member.

That shut Sasuke up.

Sasuke moaned and arched up against the squeezing hand, the words he was about to say disappearing from his mind as his blood rushed south and pleasure shot through him. Naruto grinned and moved his hand up and down watching intently as Sasuke kept thrusting into his moving hand, the pleasure clearly showing on his face.

"Damn teme, you look so hot like this...under me..."

Those words broke the spell. Sasuke's eyes shot open as the realization hit him. No matter how good that touch felt...he was an Uchiha! He would be no one's uke! With a rough shove, the blonde was off of him and on the floor.

* * *

Sakura walked into her sensei's office surprised to see both of her sensei in the room.

"Um...what are you two doing?" Both voyeurs looked up, guilt written all over their faces, well at least over the Godaime's. Sakura's eyes narrowed and she walked foward. "What are you looking at?"

"Nothing at all Sakura." Tsunade tried to hide the ball. "Uh...don't you have work to do?"

"Tsunade-sama, would you like me to call Shizune in here?" Sakura slyly asked.

"NO!" Tsunade yelled. God knows Shizune didn't need to catch her like this. She'd never live it down. Why oh why did everyone know her weaknesses?

Sakura grinned knowing she had won and leaned over to peek at the crystal ball.

Her eyes widened at the image of her two NAKED teammates very decidedly NOT fighting. The blood rushed away from her face right before she fainted.

* * *

"Teme." Naruto scowled, standing up just as Sasuke stood. The blonde's mouth abruptly went dry when his eyes took in the gorgeous pale, almost translucent specimen in front of him. _'Oh hell...'_

It was the only distraction Sasuke needed. He ran forward and tackled the blonde onto the floor. Their limbs tangled together as they battled for domination, rolling and wrestling all over the floor until Naruto ended up finally being pinned to the floor with Sasuke grinning down at him.

"Damn you teme."

"You won't be saying that soon." He looked for something he could use. His eyes lit on his belt close by. Grabbing it, he wrapped it around the wrists he had raised above the pissed off blonde's head. "You'll be begging me for more soon enough." Naruto's eyes widened. Like hell he would!

Sasuke yanked off the orange boxers and reached into his bag pulling out some lotion. It would have to do.

"Dammit teme! Get off me!"

"Alright." Sasuke got off and flipped Naruto onto his knees. Then he pulled a trick from Naruto's book and wrapped his hand around the loudmouth's cock and squeezed it, stopping the possible tussle before it could begin.

"S-Sasu...oh god..."

Sasuke grinned and generously lubricatred his fingers, almost in awe of the fact that even Naruto's backside was as tanned as the rest of his body. Spreading the golden legs wider, he ran his free hand along the tight ass, his lotioned digits sliding between the globes to circle the ring of muscles slowly before one finger slipped inside. A hiss came from the blonde. He pumped his other hand up and down the hard length in time with the one finger sliding in and out of the tight burning heat. When Naruto unconsciously began to push back against the finger, he added a second, and then a third, keeping the blonde distracted by pumping his hand faster over the throbbing member.

Naruto leaned his head forward on his bound hands. He would love to say he felt humiliated by being in this position, but he'd be lying to himself. Good god, even though the fingers were slightly painful, everything felt too good. It was so good that he was unable to stop himself from rocking backwards against the digits. And then a keening whimper escaped his lips and he blushed bright red.

Now he could feel humiliated...

Sasuke swore he heard a whimper. He looked down and saw Naruto blushing. Then he ran his thumb over the tip feeling it leaking. He gave an almost sadistic grin. "You love this don't you dobe."

Naruto turned his head to the side so he could glare. "Fu-" Sasuke slammed three fingers deep inside hitting something. "OH SASUKE!"

With another satisfied grin, Sasuke ruthlessly hit that newfound spot over and over again and pumped the throbbing length, the constant gasps and whimpers becoming music to his ears. The muscles around the digits tightened, greedily holding onto them.

"Oh god..." Naruto groaned loudly, his legs trembling as the pleasure became unbearable. "d-don't stop."

Sasuke had no plans to stop, plunging his fingers in again even deeper stabbing that spot. Naruto saw stars at that moment and screamed out his release, his body shuddering. While trying to catch his breath, he turned his head and saw the smug look the Uchiha sported and growled, although after the pleasure he just experienced, it really didn't have much anger behind it. "I'm gonna get you back for this bastard."

"Hn." Sasuke ignored the threat and lubed his own pulsing length, unable to wait any longer. He wrapped his arm around the still slightly trembling blonde's waist and guided his hips forward, slowly breaching the ring of muscles. Naruto gasped in pain trying to move forward even as a strong pale arm pulled him closer. Sasuke's eyes rolled back in his head as he was engulfed by such burning hotness. It was well beyond anything he could have imagined. He felt like exploding right then and there. "God...Naruto."

"Move..." Came Naruto's strangled voice. He didn't care if it hurt, he needed...he needed... "Please Sasuke." A moment after that he realized he just did exactly what Sasuke said he would...He begged. _'Crap!'_ He didn't dare turn to see the arrogant look he knew was on the teme's face. That thought only lasted until Sasuke slowly pulled out and pushed back inside.

Naruto threw his head back with a desperate needy half moan-half scream.

Sasuke's hand splayed against the taut stomach as he leaned over the strong back, licking and sucking on the bare skin, slowly pulling out only to slide back in. He bit his lip to cut off the low moan that threatened to spill. He never thought it could feel so good to pleasure someone else like this. Taking a deep breath, he began a slow torturous rhythm. Their bodies rocked together, slickened by sweat. Sasuke slowly slid his hand lower grazing Naruto's neglected member moving his fingers in tantalizingly slow strokes...just enough to keep the blonde on edge but no more than that. His own eyes rolled back in his head as Naruto's muscles gripped him like a vice. The Uchiha - who prided himself on control - could feel that tight control extremely close to snapping.

"Naruto..."

The low rumble went straight through Naruto, the deep lust-filled voice making him shudder. And then Sasuke thrust sharply, pulling a scream of pleasure from the blonde. Self-control swiftly disappearing, the thrusts became rough, urgent, desperate. Fingers dug into the slim hip as desire slowly built into a tight ball of pressure that was quickly becoming unbearable. He nuzzled against Naruto's neck sucking hard on the pulse point that was throbbing at double speed, possessively leaving his mark on the tanned skin for everyone to see.

Naruto panted under him, lost in pleasure, unsure whether to push backwards against Sasuke or thrust forward against those wickedly dancing fingers. Desire pooled low in his belly and built steadily with every move Sasuke made until tears leaked from his closed lids. The out of control Uchiha yanked the tanned hips back pounding fast and deep, hitting the prostate and wrenching a screaming sob from the violently shaking Naruto.

"...oh GOD..."

Sasuke angled his thrusts, viciously stabbing the spot repeatedly. His breath came in pants while sweat dripped off his chin, his legs shaking as his own tight muscles were close to giving out from exertion.

"SASUKE!"

He was so close.... Sasuke tightened the grip on Naruto's pulsing length moving up and down in rapid strokes matching his pounding thrusts. Naruto jerked as sparks of white hot pleasure raced up his spine. Another scream filled the air with another fierce thrust. A steady trickle leaked from Naruto's tip and Sasuke rubbed his thumb over the fluid.

Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut trying to stave off the orgasm he knew was only moments away.

"Oh yes...Now...Now...NOW!" Naruto's scream of his lover's name reverberated off the four walls around them as an orgasm ripped through him making him arch his back violently before convulsing under the intense pleasure. The walls clenching around his own pulsing length and the unabashed sounds of ecstasy coming from the blonde below him was Sasuke's final undoing and with a roar of Naruto's name he came inside the blonde.

And then both males collapsed in a tangled heap, their legs giving out and their bodies spent.

* * *

Tsunade stared dazed into her crystal ball, a cloth held to her nose to stem the flow of blood. Kakashi just leaned against the window with his arms crossed and a perverted smirk on his face. If Jiraiya was still alive, he would most assuredly be taking notes for a new book. Sakura was still out cold on the floor, neither Tsunade or Kakashi had bothered to help her when she fainted.

"Well...I guess that would count as them getting along." Kakashi remarked. Tsunade just nodded, not trusting her voice quite yet.

"So, I guess it would be okay to drop those wards now?"

Tsunade nodded again.

"Well, I hope you enjoyed the show Hokage-sama. I know I did. Ja!" Kakashi disappeared with a poof.

Tsunade blinked and shook herself out of her stupor, finally noticing her student was still out on the floor.

"Sakura?"

* * *

Naruto blinked his eyes open and was surprised to see the room glowing orange from the setting sun. He felt a weight across his stomach and looked down to find a pale arm wrapped possessively around his waist. Shifting onto his side, he watched Sasuke sleep. A soft smile came to his face and he brushed a dark lock of hair out of the pale face. Sasuke moaned and unconsciously tightened his hold on the blonde, pulling him closer. Naruto squirmed a bit before he found a position he was comfortable in. And then he saw the sheet of paper on the floor. _'Huh? That wasn't here before.'_ He reached an arm out to grab the paper when he noticed it. He did a double take of his arm and then his eyes went wide. He sat up shocked grabbing the white sheet and read it's contents, eyes narrowing more and more until he finally yelled out. "PERVERT!"

Sasuke was forced awake by the sound and grumbled, scrunching up his face like a small child. Naruto saw it and chuckled at the unusual sight. Then he grinned as an idea came to him. He leaned forward nipping his shoulder and licking over to his neck.

"Mmmm...Naruto..." Sasuke mumbled. He slowly opened his dark eyes to bright golden spikes. He rolled over on his back stretching. It was the best nap he'd probably had in years and because of it, his mind had yet to catch up with the rest of his body. At least that's how he would explain the way he pulled Naruto off of his neck and proceeded to kiss him slowly and languidly before pulling away. He wanted to shy away from the idea that he was hooked on the blonde. But dammit all if he didn't just look and act like a man in love. That was enough to make his normal annoyed glare resurrect itself, directed towards the person who had awoken him from a great sleep.

"What do you want dobe?"

Naruto grinned and waved his wrist in Sasuke's face, who lightly smacked the arm away.

"So?" Sasuke didn't understand what Naruto was all happy about.

"Check it out teme. Look at my arm, then look at your arm." Sasuke did and afterward raised a brow still not seeing the point. "Idiot, what is missing?"

Sasuke was about to punch Naruto in the face for calling him an idiot when he finally figured out what the blonde meant. He sat up so fast, their foreheads almost collided.

"Hey! Watch it teme!"

"Shut up dobe." He looked at both their arms. The chakra restraints were gone. With a smirk he lightly pushed Naruto off of him and stood up then tested out molding some chakra. At the familiar blue flare he grinned. At the same time, Naruto grabbed the sweats that had been tossed away earlier and put them on, making a beeline for the door just to see if it would open.

It did.

A loud whoop of joy came from Naruto. "We're free! We're free!"

Sasuke had become much more subdued standing in the middle of the room the two had inhabited for almost three days. Now that they could leave, he wasn't sure he wanted to. At least not yet. It was the closest he'd ever been to his teammate and deep down he wondered if the moment they left this little place behind, would the newest stage of their relationship change. Would things go back to the way they were? A small vulnerable voice in the back of his head, one belonging to the 7 year old Sasuke, cried out against the possibility of being left alone again. He was tired...so tired of being alone.

Naruto turned around and the glow from the sun seemed to surround him like some kind of deity. With one look at Sasuke, he could see what the brunette was thinking and the smile left his face. Closing the door behind him, he walked across the room and grabbed his sleeping bag. Then he went to the other side and took Sasuke's sleeping bag as well. Laying them both in the center of the room, he moved again and stood before Sasuke, who was now so deeply lost in thought, he didn't even notice Naruto was standing there. He placed his palm against a pale cheek.

Sasuke flinched away.

"Hey, teme..." Naruto palmed his other cheek pulling the head closer until their lips met. Smiling at his best friend, and now more than that, he grabbed the avenger's stubborn chin. "I'm not going anywhere." Sasuke's eyes darted up to the blue orbs. He searched for the truth or the lie and he saw it in the resolute gaze. "Not ever."

A small smile made it's way onto the Uchiha's face. Naruto smiled with him and then pulled him to the now makeshift bed in the middle, lying down next to him and taking a cool hand in his. Sasuke suddenly remembered there was a sheet of paper in Naruto's hand when he woke him up.

"Hey dobe? What was that piece of paper?"

"Oh...here." Naruto grabbed the folded paper from his pocket and passed it to him.

Sasuke unfolded it and started reading.

_Hello boys. Finally, you two figured out what it means to work together. I'm proud of you both. _

_As you can see, you are free to leave. Meet at the usual place tomorrow at 10 a.m for training._

_Oh...and thanks for the show! _

_Kakashi._

He crumbled the sheet of paper and growled. "I'm going to kill that perverted ninja."

* * *

A few weeks passed and the two teens had become inseparable. It was just like old times. Except for one very distinct difference that only those close to them could detect. And even though Sakura had grown well beyond her fangirling days, she was still just a bit heartbroken to learn that the boy she had harbored a crush on since the academy would never look her way. But, as a group, Team Kakashi's teamwork had improved dramatically since that horrible day Sakura thought the powerhouses would kill each other and wipe out half of Konoha with them. They returned to doing missions and everything was great.

Until the day the council found out about how close the two really were. Sasuke and Naruto weren't fools. They did their best to make sure they played the role of best friends until they were behind closed doors. Unfortunately, Ino somehow got wind of their relationship and after that it was all over. It was blabbed all over Konoha and the next thing they knew, the two of them were summoned to the council chambers to face an angry group of elders.

It didn't take long before Sasuke turned livid at their words. They could call him whatever they wanted, but there was no way in hell that he would allow the group to call Naruto a monster and an abomination. Naruto and Tsunade ended up having to restrain him. They were there another three hours before they were finally released. Tsunade was apologizing so much, Naruto almost felt bad for her. Unfortunately, he was too depressed to feel bad for anyone else but himself. Sasuke, on the other hand, was still pissed off and muttered threats of destruction under his breath. The council had given him an ultimatum...produce an heir within the next 12 months or else. It took every bit of self control he had not to electrocute them all with a high powered chidori nagashi.

They got to the spot where the two would normally separate and each go their own way. Naruto sent a completely fake smile toward Sasuke.

"See you around teme." Sasuke glared at the blonde as he started to turn and walk away. It didn't take much to read between the lines.

"Dobe." Naruto stopped, his head bowed. Sasuke growled.

"Fuck the council, Naruto! You're mine. And I'm not letting some old and wrinkled ex-ninjas take you away from me."

"But...they said..." Sasuke grabbed Naruto's arm and yanked him around to face him.

"I don't care! As far as I'm concerned the clan died with Itachi. If I have to leave this place again and take you with me I will. But I'm not letting you go." He wrapped his arms around the blonde and transported them to his place, bedroom to be exact. He slid his hands up to the whiskered face and brushed away a tear. Then he undressed him and proceeded to spend the entire night showing Naruto just how much he meant to him.

* * *

**Epilogue**

Naruto impatiently waited outside the administration building. Kakashi and Sasuke had just returned from a two-man mission and both were giving their report to Tsunade. He sat on the steps with a sigh wishing they would hurry it up. Looking at the immortalized hokage of old, he thought about how eventful things had been over the last six months. After the council's ultimatum to the last Uchiha, the two young men, together with Tsunade, searched for a loophole or some kind of solution. The only solution she could find to keep the two together without them rebelling involved finding a surrogate. But what female in Konoha would be willing to have the Uchiha's child and not want more?

"Hey Naruto." He looked up at the smiling face of his best friend and teammate, Sakura. The pink haired girl sat next to him on the stairs and took his tanned hand in hers. "Waiting for Sasuke?"

"Yep." Naruto wrapped an arm around his old crush and let her lean on him. She sighed and relaxed in his hold as they waited there together. "Hey, are you sure you should be sitting on the ground like this?"

Sakura rolled her eyes and cuffed the blonde across the head. "Baka. I'm only at three months. And I'm not some fragile little thing, you know." Naruto rubbed his now stinging head.

"Yeah, I can tell." He saw her ball up her fist and raised his hands in surrender. When she relaxed again, he slipped his hand down to her lower back and massaged the muscles there.

"Ahh...I knew there was a reason I kept you around.

"Yeah yeah yeah....So how'd the exam go?" She smiled sweetly and placed a hand over the slight bump that was previously a toned flat tummy.

"Great. Everything's just fine. I'll hold off on the details until Sasuke gets out." Naruto nodded and they both lapsed into a companionable silence.

Naruto thought back to that unforgettable day. He and Sasuke had been relaxing at the Uchiha mansion after an easy-mission-gone-bad that landed them both in the hospital overnight. They were pulled off missions for a week of recovery time. Sakura came over to check on them and brought them food. Naruto was, of course, the oblivious one. Sasuke though, could see the girl was nervous about something. He raised an eyebrow at the girl and she blushed. For a moment, Sasuke tensed up with the idea that maybe she still had that schoolgirl crush on him. But boy was he wrong. Instead, she asked them about how they were coming with the whole finding a surrogate idea. Of course, at the time, things weren't going so well. Sasuke had scared away half the females. And he had refused to even look at the rest of them. Naruto wasn't sure what they were going to do. But then Sakura said something that stunned the both of them to their core.

_"Uh...well...you see, the reason I asked was because...I was thinking...I mean...if you want...I'm willing."_

Naruto's mouth had dropped open in shock. Even Sasuke's eyes widened. They had asked her why when they'd finally recovered their senses.

_"Because you're my boys...my family. I love you both. And I'm glad to finally see you two happy. And I refuse to let you leave me behind again. Besides, it would be kind of interesting to see what the results of all three of our genes would be."_

And thus began a new adventure for all three of them. Sakura was happy just to be a part of it. And Sasuke and Naruto were just estatic at the fact that not only would they be parents together, but that they could proudly stick it to the council. An added bonus was that Sakura was the only female Sasuke would willingly allow to have their child.

"Waiting for something?" A deep voice interrupted Naruto's musings.

"About time you got done teme." Sakura elbowed Naruto eliciting a grunt of pain and then smiled sweetly at the new presence.

"Welcome back Sasuke." He nodded and all three of them walked away, a team in the truest sense, the two males listening as Sakura related her latest doctor's visit.

* * *

Naruto guided the blinded Uchiha forward while he continually complained about the darkness.

"Quit complaining teme. It'll be worth it, I promise." Naruto couldn't help but chuckle though at the Uchiha looking so helpless. The black blindfold kept Sasuke from seeing where he was taking him. He grinned as he saw their destination just ahead of them. "Alright teme, we're almost there."

"Good, I'm going to kick your ass as soon as you get this blindfold off."

Naruto rolled his eyes, ignoring the threat and moved a little faster, excitedly pulling the grumbling brunette along. He opened the door and pulled Sasuke inside before closing the door behind them. He took a deep breath and looked around smiling at the way he arranged everything. "Alright, ready teme?"

"Yes! Jeez, get this thing off of me." Naruto untied the blindfold and let it slide away Sasuke's face and waited.

Sasuke mouth parted in awe. He was standing in the middle of the room where their relationship first took a turn for the better. But this time, there was a bed against one wall, a small table in a corner, and lots of other little things to make the place look much more homey than before.

"Surprise?" Sasuke turned and stared at Naruto.

"You did all this?"

"Yep. You were gone for two weeks after all. I had the time in between short missions."

"Naruto...I don't know ho-" He was silenced by a finger at his lips, which was then replaced by a pair of soft lips massaging his own.

Sasuke wasn't sure how it happened but somehow he went from being clothed in the middle of the room to being naked in bed with a naked Naruto on top of him. "Dobe..."

"Nope...this time it's my turn." Naruto smirked and proceeded to turn the publicly stoic Uchiha into a whimpering and trembling mess with his tongue and fingers before making love to him.

Later on that night, relaxed in each other's arms, Sasuke had a sudden thought. "That pervert better not be watching us."

Naruto chuckled against his neck.

"What dobe?" Naruto raised his head just enough to speak clearly.

"If he tries, it won't be pretty. I found a little jutsu that will make sure he'll never try again."

"Really? What's it do?"

_Two hours ago_

Kakashi smirked as he snuck out to the little cabin. He'd heard from Sakura that they were going to spend the weekend there. So, making sure the perverted sannin's spirit lived on, he decided to see what his two boys would be doing. When he got there, he flashed thorugh some hand signs and touched the wood of the cabin. There was a bright flash...so bright that he could no longer see. Then he felt wind blades slice through his skin. His blinded eye went wide and he transported himself away.

He spent a full day not seeing before he finally shed his pride and asked Sakura to assist him.

Sakura could hardly heal him. She was laughing too hard to concentrate.

It was the last time he ever tried to peep on Naruto and Sasuke.

**_Owari_**

**Toomegane no Jutsu** - Telescope Technique

**Chidori Nagashi** - Thousand Birds Current

**a/n:** I had way too much fun writing this chapter. The ending came to me well, about an hour ago...Heh. Anyways, thank you so much for reading. Please review?


End file.
